Los Angeles Design Blog | Material Girls | LA Interior Design

The placement of artwork is something I often work with a client on towards the end of a project.  It usually involves us spending time together figuring the best placement for each piece.  Often I find a client may have a personal attachment to a piece of artwork that they will want to place in a special or specific location.  I tend to place artwork based on scale of the wall and arrangement of furniture. But truly, there are many ways and means of how and in what way to hang artwork.  I’ve also worked on projects where the client needed to acquire art and have worked with that client to help them select pieces.  Although, I always start by telling the client art is a very personal choice and feel they should buy what appeals to them.  Some clients have collections, others are looking to acquire, and still others are on budgets and are looking to simply decorate.  I had a client who wanted to invest in fine art and we worked collaboratively with a fine arts dealer, another client who’s husband had a comic book collection that we framed for the home office, and another client where we shopped at home good stores to find inexpensive artwork to fill the walls.

Domino magazine always featured great little how to tidbits and creative adivce like this spread on different ways to hang artwork.

This breakfast nook featured in a spread from Elle Decor displays family photos and children’s artwork with a mix of pictures leaning on a shelf and  collaged walls below.  A very personable display of art.

Framing like items is always such a great way to feature a collection, similar frames and matting define the grouping and look ideal in a hallway or corridor if there are many to display.

Clustering a set of pictures appears as one large back drop of artwork.

An interesting vignette of different scaled artwork.

Art en masse in the same size and framing creates a gallery of artwork.

Balance dominates in this living room display of art although the pieces of artwork are different in size and frames, but the arrangement is of equal balance.

Another past Domino magazine feature, a collection of plates (left) and a series of art (right) offer another way of arranging.

{There are so many creative ways to display artwork and arrange wall collections. Analyzing interiors can give you a lot of ideas on how to arrange artwork and figure which works best for your space.}

Just thought I’d say thanks to CasaSugar for including a picture I featured in a blog titled “Wall of Mirrors” (linking back to MG as source) on a post they did called “10 Ways to Create A Wall of Mirrors.” Check it out for even more amazing pictures of decorating with mirrors.  I especially love slide no 9.

And to leave you with another image, here’s Kelly Wearstler’s octagon mirror of walls for the high roller suite at the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas!

Pretty rooms infused with nature…

And if all else fails, bring the tree inside!

{Images collected over time & saved from Domino, Elle Decor, Lowell Hotel NYC, House Beautiful, Kelly Wearstler, Traditional Home.}

I recently wrote a post about a wall of mirrors…well, how about a wall of frames?  Gilded window frames, that is!  An architect in Sweden is building a housing project with windows of gilded window frames.  This project consists of 2 houses, both 6 stories wide, with 14 apartments (9 of them duplex apartments), glossy white enameled facade panels, with cast aluminium window frames that are gold leaf painted.  This reminds me a lot of something Philippe Starck would have done – mixing modern with rococo, neo-classicism, etc.

Mirror, mirror, on the wall…

This company makes wood tiles that can be used in both dry & wet areas! Check out their site here.

The one and only, Karim Rashid – known for everything from product design, industrial design, furniture design, interior design; has now launched a line of ceramic tile.
You make recognize some of his furniture as well as product design for Umbra: 

The ceramic tile line is called “R+Evolution by Karim Rashid” and is available thru Design Tale Studio.  The series showcase Rashid’s strong use of color and signature panache with eleven wall decors and five floor tiles.

These wall tiles come 12″ x 36″ and as pictured above – a creative idea for any surface such as a table…and up a wall!

And 12″ x 12″ in a porcelain tile for the floor:

To view the entire line, along with installation images, click here.

Lately, I’ve  had a few posts featuring chalkboard paint.  Well,  I just came across “Idea Paint” (featured in Elle Decor magazine this month!).  Idea Paint is a paint that can be applied to any surface (walls, furniture) and used as a dry erase board.  Great for work, school, or home environments!

Check out these fun wall decals (especially for kids!) from Modern Dose. They are called Chalkals and are an adhesive chalkboard vinyl that can be applied to walls and easily moved around (won’t damage paint). Chalk wipes on and off easily.

Hootie Includes: 2 Owls & 2 Branches ($65)

Dimensions:
Large Owl 20” x 17”
Small Owl 14” x 12”
Large Branch 50” x 17”
Small Branch 30” x 16”

Invasion includes: 3 UFOs & 1 Laser Beam ($65)

Dimensions:
Large UFO 37” x 21”
Medium UFO 21” x 12”
Small UFO 15” x 9”
Beam 57” x 17”

See additional wall decals at Modern Dose.

Decorative ceilings hail back from Roman times, seems as if a masterpiece was always being commissioned! We spend so much time analyzing the floors and walls (what wood finish, what stone to select, what area rug, what paint color) and yet neglect the ceilings. Here are a few ideas:

Love the cherry blossom pattern applied to the ceiling!

Wallpapering the ceiling is amazing – many different prints and texture to choose from. Really creates an atmosphere for a room based on the wallpaper selection.

I won’t leave out simply painting the ceiling, because decorative elements such as borders, stenciling, or faux finish can be added. An alternative paint color from the trim or walls with a different finish adds an element.

And of course, mirrors on the ceiling (Kelly Wearstler).